Aishath Noordeen resigns from BML’s board following PCB termination notice

Aishath Noordeen, the Deputy CEO of the Bank of Maldives (BML), has resigned from the bank’s board, after the Privatization and Corporatization (PCB) served her a notice of termination.

The PCB sent her the notice of termination last Thursday. However, the dismissal of executive board members must be approved at an annual general meeting.

BML confirms Aishath Noordeen – who has served at the bank for over 42 years - resigned from the board on Sunday. However, she retains her position as Deputy CEO.

On Sunday morning, the national bank suspended foreign transactions for existing debit cards, as well as new debit and credit cards linked to MVR accounts. It also lowered the monthly limit for standard and gold credit cards to USD 100.

But it reversed the decision within hours, a move the bank said was based on instructions from its regulator, the Maldives Monetary Authority (MMA).

In its original statement announcing the changes to card limits, BML said it was compelled to make the changes because the card usage is much higher than foreign currency it is able to purchase – impacting the bank’s ability to provide foreign currency support to its business customers.

BML’s CEO and Managing Director Karl Stumke said that while the bank purchased approximately USD 60 million in foreign currency from customers this year, the card usage is threefold higher than that.

He said that the card usage impacts the bank’s ability to provide foreign currency support to its business customers.

“…and we have this anomaly where the bank provides 75 percent less foreign currency to the economic sector than we do for discretionary spend on cards dominated by travel and online shopping,” he said. “We have to get the mix correct and ensure we are not squandering a scarce resource.”

Stumke said that the bank has an obligation to protect its depositors and therefore cannot continue to sell more than it is able to purchase.

He acknowledged that the changes will have a significant impact on the bank’s customers.

“We have not taken this decision lightly but have been compelled to take action to ensure we can continue to provide the necessary support for essential economic activities,” he said.

The government described the move as a coup attempt. At a ruling People’s National Congress (PNC) rally held on Monday evening, President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu himself labeled it a coup attempt, and condemned the bank.